Georgia coach Wes Johnson denies interest in Mississippi State vacancy

The open Mississippi State Bulldogs job has sparked a wide-reaching search with several coaches rumored to be in the mix. One of those is Georgia Bulldogs head coach Wes Johnson.

Johnson has heard the rumors connecting him to the Mississippi State job. However, he denies having any interest in the coaching vacancy. Instead, his focus is going to remain on the team in Athens.

“I love Georgia,” Wes Johnson said. “I have no plans to venture to Starkville. I’ll just say that.”

Wes Johnson got to Georgia in 2024, looking to rebuild the Bulldogs program. He came in with a background as a pitching coach, having worked both in the SEC at multiple stops, most recently LSU, and in MLB. That journey to being a head coach included a brief stop in 2016 at Mississippi State.

Georgia went 29-27 overall and 11-19 in SEC play the year before Wes Johnson got to Georgia. In his first season, he had the Bulldogs go 43-17 overall and 17-13 in SEC play, making it to the Super Regional. It was the program’s first Super Regional since 2008. Now, in 2025, Georgia is again looking to make noise in the postseason.

The Mississippi State Bulldogs moved on from head coach Chris Lemonis earlier this season. That came following a losing weekend against Auburn. Justin Parker is currently serving as the team’s interim head coach. At the time of his firing, Lemonis had the Bulldogs 25-19 overall and just 7-14 in SEC play.

In 2021, Lemonis led Mississippi State to a national championship. That came on the heels of a College World Series appearance in 2019 and cancellations in 2020. However, since then, the program has seemingly taken a step in the wrong direction on the field. The Bulldogs have only won more than 40 games once since then, when Mississippi State won 40 games in 2024, making an NCAA regional.

The Mississippi State Bulldogs are currently 10-14 in SEC play. That comes after sweeping Kentucky over the weekend. That put them in 13th place in the SEC standings. Georgia, meanwhile, sits at 15-9 in SEC play and is in third place.

At the time of the firing, Director of Athletics Zac Selmon announced that the program would begin its search for a new head coach immediately. That has apparently been true as rumors have swirled around the future of the position. For now, though, it would appear that Wes Johnson is out of the search.